


Jonathan

by Paige242



Category: Superman & Lois (TV 2021)
Genre: Bonding, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-12
Updated: 2021-03-12
Packaged: 2021-03-18 20:47:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,845
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29988624
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Paige242/pseuds/Paige242
Summary: Clark and Jon spend some time catching up two months after moving to Smallville.(Bonding Fluff/it is about time Jon got some attention).
Relationships: Clark Kent & Jonathan "Jon" Kent (Superman & Lois TV 2021)
Comments: 5
Kudos: 65





	Jonathan

**Author's Note:**

> This got more serious than I intended but I hope it's enjoyable!

“This pizza smells amazing,” Clark proclaimed as he set the two boxes down on coffee table.

Evening had just fallen over the Kent household and things inside were much quieter than usual. Lois had gone to meet Chrissy for a glass of wine in town and Jordan was out with Sarah. Clark wasn’t completely sure if they were dating, or just friends, but he knew what his son was hoping for and he was silently cheering him on. It took every ounce of self-control he had not to eavesdrop a little bit. But a promise was a promise.

“Sausage, pineapple, anchovies and red peppers?” Jonathan asked, unstacking the boxes and peeking in to find his own. Clark had never understood his son’s favourite combination but he nodded in affirmation before screwing up his face in mock disgust.

“They thought I was crazy when I ordered it, but I insisted—just for you.” He noted, letting out a quiet laugh.

Jon rolled his eyes as he eagerly grabbed a piece. Although it seemed impossible, it looked like he was really savoring that first bite.

Clark smiled as he opened his own box (just good old pepperoni, thank you very much).

It had been too long since that two of them had been able to hang out together. To simply relax and enjoy a nice normal evening. He had really been looking forward to it and he silently prayed that no earth-ending disaster interrupted their father-son time.

They needed this.

He and Lois had discussed it a few days ago.

They were both worried that Jon’s needs hadn’t been enough of a focus since the move and there was no question that Jon and Clark’s relationship had taken a bit of a hit. They’d always been pretty close—they both loved football, and outdoor activities, and the same sorts of cheesy action films. Plus Jon had always been a laid back optimist, like him. He was easy for Clark to get along with and, during his limited hours at home, he’d spent as much time with the boy as possible. 

But now things had shifted.

Jordan was getting powers, which was something that only Clark cold help him with. And in his desperation to finally bond with his more distant son his focus had shifted. Probably more than it should have. He and Jordan definitely had a better relationship now but he didn’t want to take what he had with Jon for granted. He may have been ‘the easy one’ but he deserved attention just as much as his brother.

Parenting twins was always a delicate balancing act. 

“So, how have things been going at school?” Clark asked, trying to strike up the conversation as casually as possible as he started his pizza. “From what I can tell, you’re getting along pretty well with the guys on the team.”

Jon shrugged, considering it for a second. “Yeah, the guys are fine,” he said, “Tag Harris and I are becoming pretty good friends, we have a lot of the same classes together. He invited me over tomorrow afternoon, actually. We’re gonna throw the ball around and try to get his arm back into shape.”

Clark was glad to hear it. It was no surprise that Jon had been making friends, he had always been friendly and was the sort of person that people were simply drawn to. Things had gotten off to a rocky start but they really did seem to be turning around.

“That’s great,” Clark replied before reaching for a drink of his soda, “Tag seems nice. So do most of the guys.”

“They are,” Jon hesitated, “now that they’re starting to forget about the whole bonfire incident.”

He could hear the hint of resentment in his son’s tone and he reached out to give him a fatherly squeeze on the shoulder. Clark knew what had happened but, even though two months had passed, they had never really talked about it. Things had been too hectic then, with the move and everything else that was going on.

He felt sorry that Jon had suffered for Jordan’s mistakes. And that explosion never would have happened if his kryptonian DNA hadn’t been in the mix.

“That whole situation was totally unfair to you,” he noted sympathetically, hoping his son didn’t mind his commentary. “You shouldn’t have to be your brother’s keeper. I hope you don’t feel that way.”

He could see Jon’s body language shift a little and the boy looked down towards the floor. It was clear that he was carefully thinking about his response.

“What can I say, I’m used to it,” he said. He didn’t sound terribly upset by the fact but there was some resignation in his voice. It seemed as if he had accepted this fate. “I’ve been his support system since second grade and I’m not really sure if I know how to stop at this point,” he paused thoughtfully, “and I don’t even think I want to stop. I know him better than anyone else in the world. I want to be there for him. He’s my best friend.”

Clark felt his heart swell at the sound of Jonathan’s words. He had often wondered how they had raised such a caring and well-balanced young man. Jon reminded him so much of his namesake—he’d like to think that his dad would have been just as proud of the boy.

He found himself at a loss for words.

“Jon…” the word came out gently as he placed his hand on his shoulder again, realizing that there was a slight lump in his throat.

The man drew a deep breath.

“You’re an amazing person, I hope you know that.”

The boy shrugged, he’d never been the best at receiving a compliment. Despite his many gifts and amazing qualities, he was somehow humble as well.

“Just make sure that you put yourself first, sometimes. You deserve to be happy too and you can’t use up all of your energy helping others. You’re not responsible for saving everyone else.”

To his surprise, the boy let out a soft chuckle. “Look who’s talking,” he joked, raising an eyebrow at his father.

Clark hadn’t really thought of it that way, but he raised his hands, realizing he had been called out. “Okay, okay, fair enough,” he conceeded, “I know I put a lot of energy into helping others too. But I’m trying to strike more of a balance now. There is nothing I want more than to be here with you guys and I am doing my best to make it a priority.”

Jon smiled, “you’ve been doing great, dad,” he said encouragingly. “It has been nice having you around way more and, when you do have to go, it feels a lot better knowing the real reason.”

Clark felt another swell of happiness and he smiled back before another thought crossed his mind.

“Do you wish I’d told you sooner?” he asked. Part of him didn’t want to bring it up, but he was curious and wanted to know more about how his son had been feeling now that the dust settled.

There was a short pause. 

“I don’t know,” Jon answered honestly after swallowing his next bite of pizza, “on the one hand, I get why you didn’t tell us when we were really little. That’s a big secret to expect kids to sit on. And what six-year-old wouldn’t want to tell all of their friends that their dad is Superman?”

Clark nodded. That had definitely been some of their reasoning.

“On the other hand, finding a secret spaceship isn’t the best way to find out. And it kinda felt like you only told us because you’d been caught,” he stopped for a moment, “what was the plan, dad? Were you going to try to hide it forever?”

Jon was looking at him with expectant eyes and Clark let out a slow breath. Those were all valid thoughts and he had also wished that things had played out a bit differently. But there was no going back now.

“I don’t know what my plan was, if I’m being honest,” the father confessed, shaking his head. “Your mom wanted you to know, your grandfather never wanted me to tell you and I…” he trailed off, thinking it though. “I really don’t know what I wanted. I wanted to make sure that we could protect the big secret and I didn’t know the best time. I hoped we could put it off as long as possible, but deep down I knew we couldn’t hide it forever, you did have the right to know. I think, though, in my perfect world it would have all just gone away. I see myself as Clark Kent, and I never wanted you boys to see me as anything else. That’s the hardest part for me.”

Once he had started he had not been able to stop and he surprised himself with his degree of open honesty. He hadn’t even put it to Lois in these terms, but it was the truth.

He wished the boys didn’t have to know about his secret life. It was a life he’d never asked for and none of it felt as natural as simply being Clark.

Keeping up the façade with them had made it easier to lie to himself inside.

He could still remember how he felt that day after the big reveal. The way the boys had looked at him—as if he were a stranger—that had hurt more than anything else.

“I think I get it,” Jon said quietly, looking towards him, “and it was probably good that we got to grow up without feeling like we constantly had to hide something. But—” Clark could see a small frown forming, “all of this secret identity stuff has some pretty big implications for us, dad. We deserve to know who we are.”

Clark nodded as his son continued.

“My whole life, I’ve seen news stories about alien invaders. Beings from distant planets who have shown up and, more often than not, caused some sort of destruction. And I’ve known about Superman, too. The good alien, here to keep us safe.”

It sent an uncomfortable shudder through his body to hear Jon describe him in that way, but he knew that the boy wasn’t wrong. 

He had never fully accepted it, not even as an adult, but it was true.

“It was all vaguely interesting to consider but I never thought I was part of it,” he finished with a heavy breath, “I know that you just want to be Clark Kent, dad, but you’re not. You were born lightyears away, on another planet, and you have all sorts of crazy powers. You’re not human. And Jordan and I…I don’t know,” the teen shook his head, clearly a bit overwhelmed by it all. “Jordan has powers, so he’s clearly like you. And I just don’t know what I am anymore. I’ve always been good at physical stuff, and maybe that’s a bit of alien DNA coming out too. Or maybe it just hasn’t happened yet. Or maybe I’m the human twin while Jordan is the kryptonian.”

Clark swallowed thickly. He certainly hadn’t intended for their evening to spin in this direction but he could tell that Jon had spent a lot of time dwelling on this and had been sitting on it for far too long. It was his fault—he should have asked sooner. But his own flaws and insecurities had stopped him from doing so.

He hated feeling this way, like an uncomfortable outsider. He’d spent so much of his life trying to avoid these sorts of conversations. But, no matter how many times he saved this planet or how long he spent trying to be a normal husband and father, Jon was right. He was more than just Clark Kent.

As hard as it was, he was resolved to share what he could. His son deserved this.

“First of all,” he started, trying to keep his voice steady, “you’re both a mix of your mother and me. That’s how it works. You’re half-human and half-kryptonian, Jon, just like your brother. Things are just manifesting a bit differently.”

His son had an unreadable expression on his face. “Yeah, I kinda figured,” he muttered. 

“Secondly, I wish I had some answers for you but I don’t know if your physical aptitude comes from me. Or if something more is going to emerge. If I ever figure it out, you will be the first to know, I promise.”

“That’s what I assumed,” his son said again before looking back towards him, “thanks for finally talking about it, dad. I get that you don’t want to.”

Clark instantly felt guilty for his own reluctance. His feelings needed to be put aside, he knew that. His son was amazingly mature and empathetic, but he couldn’t take advantage of that.

And maybe facing this with his boys was what he needed to finally reach a higher level of acceptance.

“Here’s the thing, Jon,” he began to explain, “when I was a kid, I thought I was human too.” The boy’s eyes widened in slight surprise. “When I started getting powers, around age six, my parents told me I was special and drilled in the importance of secrets. But they didn’t actually tell me about the spaceship and my true origins until I was just a bit younger than you. It never occurred to me that I could be from somewhere else, and this was all before other species started visiting earth. So believe me, I do know how it feels.”

“I didn’t know all of that,” his son confessed in surprise, “I thought you always knew.”

Clark shook his head. “Nope. Finding out was hard, and I did my best to accept it. But I grew up thinking I _was_ just Clark Kent. I didn’t hear the name Kal-El until I went to the fortress at eighteen, and no one called me Superman until I was in my twenties. I do know what I am and where I was born, but—” he paused for a moment, meeting his sons gaze, “I’ve also come to realize over the years that those things matter less than how I was raised.”

Clark found himself looking towards the old mantle. They had done a lot of redecorating since moving here, but all of the old photographs were still proudly displayed and his eyes fell on one of his favourite shots of him and his parents. They were both smiling so proudly, their arms draped over his shoulders as they posed for the camera. He felt an unwelcome prickle behind his eyes and he forced himself to look away. It was still hard for him to accept that his father was gone, even after all these years. It had been too abrupt and too soon.

And now mom…

He’d barely given himself any time to grieve.

It still felt as if she might come around the corner at any moment, offering up a plate of her famous oatmeal cookies. He’d happily give up every power he had for that. 

“I know I’ll never live up to the amazing example my parents set,” he began truthfully, “but that is still what drives me every single day. They made me who I am and taught me the real meaning of humanity. It isn’t about genes or DNA, Jon, it is so much bigger than that. It is about compassion, and empathy. Helping people and striving to leave this world in a better state than you found it.”

There was a small smile on Jon’s face now and Clark felt as if he was getting through.

“I wish I had more answers for you about your unique biology, but I don’t know much about that. What I am sure of, however, is that you are one of the best people I know. You are so wonderfully human where it counts. I’ve told you this before,” he swallowed, still trying to keep his emotions at bay, “but you remind me so much of the first Jonathan Kent. We could not have chosen a better namesake. You embody so much of what he stood for and I am so proud of you for that.”

His son starred at him for a long moment before letting his smile grow even wider than it had been before.

“Thanks, dad,” he said, letting out a deep breath, “I think that helps.”

He found himself smiling back.

There was still a long path ahead, for both of himself and his boys, but Clark would always be grateful that they had such a firm foundation to keep them all grounded. Here, in this house, that legacy seemed even more present than it had before.

No matter what life threw their way—powers, enemies, feelings of isolation— they would always know where they came from in the way that counted most.

_It would always be Jonathan who kept them all together._


End file.
